Glass Message Board
Glass Discussion & Research. NO IDENTIFICATION REQUESTS here please. => Germany => Topic started by: Harry on August 25, 2018, 11:10:21 AM
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I am looking for information and pictures of glass made by Kunstglasfabrik Gebrüder Funk. Often listed as Lusatian (Lausitz), Gebrüder Funk were located in Penzig that, between the wars was part of Germany. The company apparently did not continue after the war. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
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I thought I should add - I know the where, the when, and a little bit about the who. I know that in 1936 they employed 150 workers and at some point in the '20s or '30s, (based on an acid stamp mark seen on some products) they had an output large enough to export to the United States. I also know Gebrüder Funk was located in Silesia, not Lusatia. What I don't have is many actual pieces or a large enough picture library of their products to know it when I see it. I suspect there are a good deal more than those I recognize. I would love to see what's out there if you have pictures you can share.
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Hello and welcome to the board. :)
It sounds as if you may well know more about this than any of us do.
It's really interesting - I might have been tempted to try to attribute some of those to Welz.
Anything more you could show us or tell us would be greatly appreciated.
One member here Obscurities (I think) is working on the Welz output.
You may (hopefully) find you have plenty to discuss. :)
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Thank you for the welcome and kind words. I have corresponded with Obscurities through another site. It was because of a conversation we had there that I came here. In that (multi-partied) conversation, a well-known German glass collector gave me an indication that there was some knowledge available. With the hefty prices (especially when you add shipping to US) in online German shops and active competition for reasonably priced auctions, this seemed to confirm an interest. While I'm waiting for a couple books from Germany to arrive (which may or may not be helpful), I thought I'd see what develops here.
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:) I'm very pleased to hear you already know Craig.
But I'm afraid I know very, very little. I'm going to take a back seat and hope this continues so I can learn. Hopefully, it will become a very long and informative endeavour! ;D
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Have you read "Vor 150 Jahren Beginn der Glasproduktion in Penzig O/L. Von Ulrich Werner (Rothenburg)" ?
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Yes I have, thank you.
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This is a link to that article.
http://www.glasmuseum-weisswasser.de/neuste_nachrichten_13_2008_werner.pdf
I have also seen a document written on company letterhead paper where the company calls itself Spezialglashüttenwerke Gebrüder Funk & Co. I have seen an online partial catalog for Adlerhütten and what little else I have encountered seems to imply these Penzig companies produced mostly pressed crystal for a multitude of uses. Funk seems an exception ("special?").
The document showed that Funk was providing items to hotel gift shops and probably had a network of sales reps throughout Germany. Brochures or catalogs probably existed at some time - it sure would be nice to see one. :)
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To clarify a earlier statement, it is not possible to separate Lusatia from Silesia. Beyond that, this is the story of Spezialglashüttenwerke Gebrüder Funk & Co as far as I have been able to put together so far. Any corrections or contributions are gladly accepted, and of course, I would still love to see more pictures of their products.
Penzig (now Piensk, Poland), located on the east side of the Lusatian Neisse River, by the mid-1850s was settled mostly by ethnic Germans. The first glass house was built there around that time and over the years Penzig developed into a regional center for the glass industry. In the early part of the 20th Century there were at least a half dozen large glass works in the town when, in 1914, Kurt and Max Funk, along with business partners Rudolf Baldermann and Otto Heidenreich, started their business. Gebrüder Funk & Co. is described as making lighting glass, vases, and "specialties in all colors". They chose a location away from the industrial area out on DeschkaerStrasse (now Luzyka Street). Later that same year, Germany declared war on Russia.
There was some fighting nearby to the north but Penzig and its glass industry survived unharmed. As the dust settled, the industry prospered. In 1925, Gebrüder Funk employed 100 workers blowing, grinding, and "blasting"(?) products. By 1935 they employed 150. In 1939, Germany invaded Poland.
After nearly six more years of war. this time when the dust cleared there was little left of Penzig or its industries. Some reports say the glass houses and other industries were stripped of all usable items by their owners and evacuated into Germany ahead of the Russian Army's arrival. Bombing by the British and shelling by the Russians destroyed most of what was left of the downtown and industrial zone. Even the somewhat isolated location of Gebrüder Funk & Co. was no protection from destruction. By treaty at the end of WWII, land east of the Neisse River changed from Germany to Poland. Shortly thereafter Penzig became Piensk. Gebrüder Funk & Co. did not return.